Hi, its me, Maggie!!!

Most of you know, I live at a rescue.  Hopefully not forever, but for now, I can say its not bad at all.

Oh My, we have some interesting “inquiries”  If you want me, or one of my OTTB brothers or sisters, believe me, you really need to think about it.  Long and hard.  Me?  I don’t have to think about much at all. I either like you, or I don’t.  Simple as that.  I know what I want in an owner, do you know what you want in a horse?

Someone flashy?  ?  Someone that is fiesty, so you can show the world how wonderful and experienced you are because you are the only one that can handle the horse?  If that is the case, keep looking..

I want someone that wants me for who I am.  Good and bad.  Like marriage.  Really.

I am a handful, no doubt about it.  Really good with the right person. REALLY bad with the wrong person.  Did I mention if I don’t like you, you will be the first to know?  It has nothing to do with your ‘experience”  but with you.  Who you are, and the energy you have surrounding you.  Calm and consistent?  lets be buds.  High strung, stressed, unpredictable, and full of yourself ? ( you think you are an “expert” ), not a chance.

There are horses in fact that will put up with that second person.  I won’t.  I am smart.  But seriously, why should any horse put up with these kinds of people?

So if you are contacting a rescue, looking for a horse, hopefully you have thought long and hard about adopting a horse.  Most of us here, are ex-racehorses.

Retired for one reason or another, mostly because of injuries when we were young and starting.  Do you want an injured and retired race horse?  Most of us can do whatever you like, with the exception of high stress competitions.  We can do dressage, western pleasure, trail, tricks, obstacles and some low level hunter/ jump, and  endurance races.

But put some thought into it.  If you are looking for a lifelong partner, please, come see all of us. If you are looking for the latest trend, or the flashiest horse, for “now”  please keep going.

Rescues adopt out horses to qualified homes that have references that check, have proper knowledge, and proper stabling situations and are able to afford both feed, hay and care appropriate for that breed, age, type of horse.  Here is a sample of one line messages our barn lady has received.  I am going to munch carrots while you read them over…

I need a horse, when can I come get one?

How much are you selling your horses for?

I would like a few of your horses, I have plenty of money

I am an expert in OTTBs  I trained one as a kid

I got rid of all of my horses last year and now I need another one.

I was born in the saddle, I am well qualified, I want to buy “fill in the blank w horses name”

Over the years, we have found the true horsemen and women to be humble and unassuming.  Understanding that adopting is a process, where you look for an appropriate match.  It takes time.  Understanding that adopting from a rescue is a commitment for life, and if you adopting one of our young thoroughbreds, that is a lot of time and a lot of money.

I had never had a good horse person say in the first sentence, I was born in the saddle.  But I have heard that from many people who are not able to handle a horse, one person was not  even able to halter the horse.  Born in a saddle, rode for 40 years  Not even a  halter  Really, its true!

The number of years really is not related at all to horsemanship.  How you handle your horse is.  Do you have light hands or do you need a lot of aids to “control” your horse, does he or she get plenty of pasture time, have you done any research on what it takes to care for and maintain a young racehorse?  Do you think it is important that your tack is well fitting?  How about problems you have had with your horse, how did you handle them?  Did you work thru them in a kind consistent clear way so that horse understood or did you just tie their head down, get out a whip and carry on?

All of those things matter much more than how many years.  A person w not so much experience but a lot of common sense and a good trainer goes a long way.  Putting thought into the experience and seriously asking “is this the right fit for me” not just now, but forever?   If the horse is for a daughter, what are your plans when she goes off to college?  Gets married?  Has children?  Will you keep the horse, or then realize you don’t have the time anymore?  These are all very serious questions to ask and have answered BEFORE considering an adoption.

Most genuine adopters come to us with a background of who they are, what they have done and what they are looking for in a horse. The quirky one  liners above, and nothing more than big, huge red flags

If you want to pick up a horse quick without putting any thought into it, there are many places where you can do that.  but a rescue is not one of them.  We adopt out to local homes only, to people who are willing to come out, work with the horses, see who matches  (horse matches w owner, and owner has to match with horse) over a period of at least a few weeks .  During this time we can tell you about the horse you are adopting, you can work with that horse, and learn about all of his/her medical, behavioral, stabling requirements, and feeding regimens.